{"id":426988,"date":"2026-01-23T00:47:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T00:47:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/426988\/"},"modified":"2026-01-23T00:47:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T00:47:09","slug":"ex-nfl-wag-says-not-to-romanticize-the-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/426988\/","title":{"rendered":"Ex-NFL WAG says not to ‘romanticize’ the life"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ex-NFL WAG says not to ‘romanticize’ the life<\/a> originally appeared on The Sporting News<\/a>. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

An NFL<\/a> WAG is pushing back on the glossy image often associated with professional football, offering a blunt look at what life can be like long after the stadium lights dim.<\/p>\n

In a recent Instagram Reel, Lacey Leonard shared footage of her husband, former NFL defensive tackle Louis Leonard, navigating a hospital corridor in a wheelchair. The post quickly resonated with fans and former players alike for its unfiltered message.<\/p>\n

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\u201cMy husband survived the NFL, but now he\u2019s surviving everything it left behind,\u201d Lacey wrote. As the video rolled, she described the daily physical challenges Leonard faces, adding, \u201cPeople see the glory, the lights, the crowds, but they don\u2019t see this \u2014 the aftermath.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her message was simple and pointed: \u201cDon\u2019t romanticize this life. The real work happens after the game is long over.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leonard, now 41, played in the league from 2007 to 2010, suiting up for six teams during a journeyman career that totaled 33 tackles. He and Lacey met as freshmen at Fresno State University and share two children. After divorcing in 2012, they remarried in 2018.<\/p>\n

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Lacey has been open about the couple\u2019s current reality, which includes frequent physical therapy sessions at the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center. \u201cThis is our reality,\u201d she said in another post. \u201cA warrior learning to move again, step-by-step.\u201d<\/p>\n

In October 2025, Lacey revealed that Louis is battling Parkinson\u2019s disease along with stage-4 kidney disease. She has also spoken candidly about the logistical challenges former players can face once league benefits expire. \u201cThe NFL only provides five years of health coverage \u2014 then a cliff,\u201d she wrote in a separate Reel, noting that certain therapies had been denied despite physician recommendations.<\/p>\n

Support poured in from across the sports world. Hall of Famer Terrell Owens commented, \u201cPeople just don\u2019t know!!!!\u201d Former linebacker and actor Terry Crews added, \u201cAmen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beyond social media, Lacey is involved with the Off the Field Players’ Wives Association<\/a>, a group that supports families of both active and retired players.<\/p>\n

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For Lacey, sharing their story is about visibility and connection. \u201cThe outfits and the noise fade,\u201d she wrote. \u201cThe paperwork and the pain don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ex-NFL WAG says not to ‘romanticize’ the life originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":426989,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[436],"tags":[49,48,178288,178287,178286,178285,3004,514,82,178289],"class_list":["post-426988","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nfl","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-hospital-corridor","tag-instagram-reel","tag-lacey-leonard","tag-louis-leonard","tag-michael-jordan","tag-nfl","tag-sports","tag-unfiltered-message"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/426988","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=426988"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/426988\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/426989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=426988"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=426988"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=426988"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}